


So Come On and Let Me Know

by Chash



Series: Home Improvement [1]
Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Reality Show, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-01
Updated: 2018-06-01
Packaged: 2019-05-16 17:18:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,375
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14815556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chash/pseuds/Chash
Summary: Five seasons into her career as an HGTV personality, Clarke feels like she's got a handle on things. She's good at her job, has a decent relationship with her coworkers, and their ratings are great. This can be her life, for the foreseeable future, and she's happy with that.She just needs to know if Bellamy actually got married while they were on hiatus. So she can brace herself for what comes next.





	So Come On and Let Me Know

**Author's Note:**

  * For [bgonemydear](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bgonemydear/gifts).



> Brit has been on an HGTV kick, and as soon as I said the words, "You know, in a Bellarke _Love It Or List It_ AU, Clarke would be the designer and Bellamy would actually be the contractor," I was pretty much doomed.
> 
> I discovered some things doing research for this fic that broke much of the illusion for Brit; I've incorporated some of them in here, but I've also left some things more like they appear on TV, because it's my story and I can do what I want.

"Happy season five, I got you coffee."

Clarke startles and turns to see Murphy next to her with two Starbucks cups and his usual semi-scowl.

"Are you trying to make friends _now_? I already know you. It's too late to make a good impression."

He shrugs one shoulder. "Thought you might have had a crappy summer."

"That's weirdly thoughtful of you."

"It's not that hard to get two cups of coffee. You can set the bar a little higher."

"This is the first time you've ever gotten two cups of coffee. I'm not convinced it'll ever happen again."

"Yeah, it probably won't. So, how was your summer?"

"Fine."

"That's it? That's all you're giving me? No cameras yet, now's the time to vent."

It's not that she and Murphy are friends, exactly, but after four years of working together, they're certainly friendly. And they both live in the same weird, heightened, unreal reality of reality TV, which means he mostly gets her life. Better than a lot of people do, anyway.

She takes a sip of her coffee. "If he got married, I wasn't invited."

"You didn't ask?"

"It felt weird. You weren't invited either, right?"

"Yeah, but we're enemies. He's on your team."

Clarke snorts. "How could I forget?"

"I think he didn't get married," Murphy says, ignoring her. "No offense to what's her name--"

"Gina."

"Yeah, her. They never felt like they were going to make it."

"Since when are you a relationship expert?"

"Since I started doing this fucking show and had to deal with a billion couples a week."

She has to hide a smile. "Okay, but you've never even met Gina. And even if they're not married yet, it doesn't mean they're not getting married. But they could just be married. He said they were doing something small, I wasn't really expecting an invitation."

"So you spent the entire summer hiatus not talking to him because you didn't want to find out if he actually got married? Is that what happened?"

"I never talk to him that much outside of work," she protests. "Or you! We're coworkers, not friends."

"Uh huh."

"We texted a few times, but I didn't know how to ask. If he didn't want to invite me to the wedding, it would be awkward to bring it up. And it probably would have been weird for him to invite me to the wedding."

"Cameras coming," says Murphy. "Keep me posted."

The two of them stand together, smiling at the crew approaching. "Yeah," she says. "I'll let you know."

*

Clarke knows why she was cast in _Should I Stay Or Should I Go_. It wasn't quite nepotism, because she's not related to anyone actually involved in production, but it's very close. Which is pretty much a summary of her whole life, as the daughter of Hollywood insiders; she always told herself she wasn't going to get involved in show business or leverage her connections, but when she started working as a designer, it was her parents' friends who hired her first, and that was how she built her business. The reputation she has now--or, at least, the one she had before the show--was deserved, but she owes a lot of it to her parents and their influence.

The show is even more mixed, as a way to make herself feel like a legitimate adult who's earned her place in the world. It's going to be the new defining point of her career, not being Abby Griffin's daughter or even the person who worked on this or that famous person's house. She's the _Should I Stay Or Should I Go_ lady, and while she doesn't regret it, she sometimes wonders about the version of her life where she's still _just_ an interior decorator, not an odd kind of celebrity.

The version of her life where she never met Bellamy Blake.

They film the episodes in batches, four at a time in the same rough geographic location, so that the work can be done concurrently. She and Murphy have a day of filming introductions and generic banter, and then they get down to the actual tours and planning, as well as meeting the families and finding out what they have to work with and what they're trying to do. During that week, Clarke comes up with plans and passes them along to Bellamy to pass along to the contractors, but they don't actually see each other on camera until week two.

None of which means she can't see him on her own, it just means she has to actually reach out, and she's always a little hesitant. The same thing happened when she was in school, this simultaneous desire to see her friends again after summer break while also wondering if they might have somehow stopped liking her while they were gone.

So when he texts her at four on the first day of filming, it's very appreciated.

**Bellamy** : How's it going?

**Me** : The usual  
We did a drive-by on the houses, exteriors are fine, nothing special  
Murphy's an asshole

**Bellamy** : Sounds right  
Busy tonight?

**Me** : Not yet

**Bellamy** : Cool  
Let me know when you want to get drinks

Bellamy was slightly late addition to the show, part of the slight second-season retooling. During the first season, they'd used only local contractors, different guys for each of the filming areas, but Clarke's chemistry with them was variable, and not all of them were comfortable on camera. The producers decided they should hire a dedicated head contractor for the show, someone with whom Clarke could have the same kind of friendly but somewhat antagonistic relationship that she had with Murphy. 

The screen test went alphabetically, so Bellamy was first, and Clarke knew as soon as they finished that he was the one they were going to hire. She went through the rest of the auditions, just to say that she did, but she didn't have the natural vibe she had with Bellamy, and none of them had the right sense of humor, the correct balance of affection and bickering.

She didn't have a crush on him then, and she still doesn't, mostly. They're friends, and she likes him, but she's aware that they're rarely themselves, when they're together. She can like him and enjoy his company, but the lines of identity are blurred on camera, and she can tell herself that the version of him she likes so much isn't the real one.

And he's engaged, or was engaged, the last time she saw him. He could be married by now. Which would be good for him, obviously; Clarke would support that.

She'd just like to know, so she can adjust her emotional reactions accordingly.

They finish up just before six, and Clarke's at the bar Bellamy found with a drink by quarter past, in a booth in the back, watching the door for him. It doesn't take long for him to show up, and she has the chance to watch him as he places his order. He's grown some facial hair over the break, which the producers may or may not let him keep, and his hair is a little less shaggy. His arms still look almost comically huge in his t-shirt, and when he spots her and smiles, her stomach still flops, despite her best efforts.

Her crush isn't technically a crush in the same way she didn't technically get this job because of nepotism; the distinction exists, but she's probably the only person in the world who cares about the distinction.

"Hey," says Bellamy, sliding into the booth across from her. "Happy season five."

"Happy season five."

When they raise their glasses, there's no ring on his finger, which doesn't really mean anything. There are all sorts of reasons he might not be wearing a ring.

"How was your summer?" she asks, once they've shared their first sips.

"Pretty good. Helped my sister remodel her place, which was--interesting."

Clarke smiles. "I'm guessing she had a lot of opinions?"

"All clients have a lot of opinions. But yeah, she was basically a nightmare to work with. Her husband sat us down after we were done and told us they were never hiring me again. Which was the right call, but the place did come out looking awesome."

"And that's your biggest news from the summer?"

The sip of beer he takes is a deliberate stall tactic. "Why wouldn't it be?"

"Bellamy."

He runs his hand through his hair. "Look, uh--I don't know how to say this, so I'm just going to say it: Gina turned me down, when I proposed. I didn't get married this summer. It was never even on the table."

Of all the explanations she'd considered, that never even occurred to her, and it stings. "When you proposed? At _Christmas_?"

"Yeah."

She takes a second to make sure her tone doesn't betray her hurt. It's _his_ life, and his business. He's not required to fill her in, even if she'd like him to. But she thinks curiosity is acceptable. "Why didn't you tell me?"

He runs his hand through his hair. "I don't know. It felt weird to just bring it up."

"Breakups are always awkward."

It feels like the understatement of the century, especially when the breakup happens because he proposed and Gina said _no_. Judging from his slightly wry smile, he feels the same way. "Incredibly."

"Do you want to talk about it now?"

"It sounds worse than it was. It's not like I got down on one knee in front of our friends and family and she said no. I didn't even, uh-- _ask_ ask. I brought it up to see if she was cool with the idea, and it turned into a long conversation about--" He waves vaguely. "All the stuff we weren't on the same page about, and how we wanted different things. It's probably the healthiest possible outcome."

"Still, that sucks."

"I don't know. I was going to propose because it felt like the next thing. Everyone was asking me why I hadn't done it yet, so I figured I should."

"And then you didn't want to tell everyone that it didn't work out?"

"We do spend a lot of time talking about couples that aren't going to make it," he says, dry, and Clarke winces. "Hey, I do it too, I'm not pissed. But I needed some time to not worry about anyone at work knowing. Even you."

The distinction helps a little. "So, do you need to talk about anything? What do you want from me?"

He ducks his head, looking pleased. "If you can tell the rest of the cast and keep it off camera--"

"Yeah, of course."

"It sounds so fucking stupid," he admits, with a sigh. "It's not like anyone who watches the show is tuning in to hear about my love life."

"No, but drama is drama. Better to avoid giving the producers anything to work with."

"I like to keep my personal life as far off camera as I can, yeah," he agrees.

"So, how are you doing?"

"Honestly? I feel bad about how fine I am. Gina and I are still friends, and it's--you know how it is, when you're in a relationship you shouldn't be in? I felt like I should have been able to make it work, but I also felt relieved that I wasn't trying anymore."

"Yeah, I know how that is."

"I'm still sorry I didn't tell you," he offers.

"I was more offended you didn't invite me to your wedding."

He laughs. "Well, I probably wouldn't have if it happened, so you can be offended about that too."

"Dick."

"You knew that." He clears his throat, looks away. "So, how are the new houses?"

It's a clear, deliberate, and undeniable change in topic, and Clarke reminds herself that it's not an insult, that he wants this conversation to be over. He's not required to tell her how he's doing with his breakup. Especially since he already _did_. Maybe he's lying about being fine with it, but it's not really her right to push.

"We're going to have tons to argue about," she says, and he laughs.

"Sounds perfect."

*

She brings Murphy a coffee the next morning, and murmurs, "They never actually got engaged."

Murphy's eyebrows shoot up. "Yeah?"

"I guess he needed some time to not talk about it, but yeah. He floated the idea of getting married at Christmas, she said no, he didn't want to deal with it at work yet, so he didn't tell us. He says he's doing fine."

"Did he declare his undying love for you?"

"Only because you're already married," she says, rolling her eyes. "It's not like that."

To her surprise, Murphy actually sobers, staring out into the middle distance like he's actually mulling something over. It's rare enough she almost wants to take a picture. "I know you guys don't actually have a thing going, but you probably should. And you should be careful. If you're not careful, the network will try to force you into some spin-off where you two go into business together and have cameras on you twenty-four-seven. So if you're going to try to fuck him, do it on your own time."

That one takes a second to work through. "Are you worried about me?"

"No, but this show is a pretty sweet gig. I don't really want you screwing it up for me, and now that Bellamy's single, it's basically inevitable."

"I'm not going to ruin the show," she says. "And I don't want to be filmed all the time, I'd never sign onto that."

"But you get what I'm saying. You know what would happen if you guys started flirting on camera? You know the producers would pounce on that. Suddenly you'd be getting scripts for a side romance."

Clarke winces. "I wouldn't do that either."

"So they wouldn't give you scripts. Stop playing dumb, you know what I mean."

"I do know what you mean." She bumps his shoulder. "You mean you're worried about me and you don't want me to get hurt."

"I don't want to have to find a new co-star. I already learned to get along with you, I don't want to have to learn to get along with someone else. One person is my limit."

She has to smile. "Thanks, Murphy."

"Whatever. I'm just saying it because you got me coffee."

*

When Clarke signed up for _Should I Stay Or Should I Go_ , she assumed it would flop hard, and she wouldn't be upset about it. She didn't understand why people would want to watch it, and she thought that she'd get tired of moving around every few weeks, working on houses that might or might not have anything interesting going on.

Instead, the formula has proved incredibly popular, and she and Murphy probably are set for as many seasons as they want to go. They've been picked up through season ten already, and when Clarke isn't filming, she has no shortage of people who have seen the show and want her to work on their houses. She could probably keep herself in business full time for the rest of her life, just from the reputation she's already got after five seasons.

But she really does _like_ being on the show. 

"Wow," Murphy says. They've just opened the door into what is, without a doubt, the shittiest backyard Clarke has ever seen in her entire career. She's not a landscaper, but she really has to do _something_ out here. Everything is just _sad_ , and there's no way they'll stay in the house with a yard like this. "This is going to be great for you."

One of her favorite things about the show is that she gets to be the optimist to Murphy's pessimist. It doesn't always come naturally to her, and it's nice to basically be forced to see the good in things. "It is," she agrees. "I haven't done a lot of lawn work, I'm glad I get to try something new."

"Or, you know, I'm going to find them a place that already has a nice backyard. Probably with a homeowner's association that will take care of it for them. You should just give up now."

"Because that's how the show works."

"Try it again," says the producer, Harper, used to this.

Clarke's used to it too; she doesn't miss a beat. "I'm excited. This is going to be fun."

"You're right, it really is. This is going to be the one that breaks you."

"You wish," she shoots back.

But there's a part of her that really _is_ nervous. It's something the producers warned her about, that this couple wanted work done in their yard, but it's so much worse than she was expecting. Usually, if she has to work on an exterior, it's putting in a deck or a porch, maybe renovating a pool. Not redoing the whole thing.

This one is going to be interesting.

It's a couple of women living here, which Clarke always appreciates, and they explain that the yard was on their list of projects when they moved in, but they were busier than they expected, and as it got worse and worse, they wanted to deal with it less and less. Now, they're looking into adopting--both a dog and a child--and they're worried about their space reflecting on them poorly during home visits.

"I'm not concerned about our ability to maintain the property," Lexa explains, in the tones of someone who has never been concerned about her ability to do anything. "But if we can't make this into the place we imagined when we moved--"

"We bought it because we saw the potential," Costia explains, smiling at her wife. "But I was in grad school and Lexa had just gotten a new job. By the time our heads were above water, we realized just how much we'd neglected our living space, and how hard it would be to bring it back."

"It's a lovely space," Clarke says, which isn't a lie, but is taking a lot on faith. "I can't wait to bring out its full potential."

They do a couple more takes, get information about budget, and Clarke keeps her game face on until the cameras are off and she's back in her hotel, at which point she calls Bellamy.

"Remember how we had that house with the yard that needed work?"

"Wrong number."

She ignores him. "It's so much worse than I thought."

"Yeah?"

"There's a little work to do inside, but it's almost entirely the back yard. It's basically a mud pit."

"Awesome. Is that really our thing?"

"I think it's going to be the season premiere," she says. "Probably, you know, _a unique challenge the team has never faced before_."

"Because it's not our job."

"I don't start filming until after lunch tomorrow, do you want to get breakfast and look at the landscape contractors we have to work with?"

He huffs. "You know you don't have to be like this, right? Murphy isn't using his spare time to find houses on the market, he just lets the PAs handle that. You're the one who decided you need to vet every person you hire."

"My reputation is on the line here."

"You're a control freak."

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"It is a bad thing."

"How about control enthusiast?"

"That sounds like a kink." He pauses. "One of us should be writing this down, it's gold. The network wishes they were filming this."

"The network wishes we'd let them do a behind-the-scenes side show where they filmed every second of me and Murphy's lives."

"No, they don't want anyone to find out Emori exists. You don't want to let down all those Clurphy shippers." Another pause, and she can practically see him pulling a face. "I never said that aloud before, is that really what they call you guys?"

"That's the real reason we could never work. Bad portmanteau ship name."

"I wish I'd known that was an issue, Gina and I would have known to not even try."

His voice is casual, easy, but Clarke can't help reading into the statement. Is he feeling bad for not telling her earlier, trying to make it up by talking about his breakup now? Is he still hurting and trying to be cool about it? Is she just kind of a mess about this? 

At least she knows the answer to the last one.

"Bina isn't bad."

"I was thinking Gellamy. Which has that gif/jif issue. Some people would say it should be Jellamy. It would be this whole thing."

"And they're all pretty uneven. All you or all her. Clurphy is a little more balanced."

"Still too much Murphy."

"Bellina's nice. Kind of Italian."

"Yeah. But it's too late."

"Is there something you want me to be doing with this breakup?" she finally asks. "I can't tell if you want to talk about it or not."

"I want to get comfortable talking about it. It's going to come up on camera sooner or later, I want to make sure I sound okay. Because I am."

"Yeah, that really makes you sound okay."

"I am. It's just hard to say someone turned down your proposal without it sounding like a bad thing."

"Yeah, I can't imagine why."

He groans. "Shut up. I'm serious. It was the right call, but--"

"Awkward."

"Pretty much."

"Well, I told Murphy, so you don't have to. But he might try to make you feel better."

"Fuck, I can't even imagine what Murphy trying to comfort me looks like."

"You'll have to let me know," she says, even though she kind of does know. He's been trying to make her feel better, the last few days. It's nice, if more than a little disconcerting.

"Will do. When do you want to meet tomorrow to go over landscapers?"

Clarke grins; he really _is_ the best. "Whenever works for you."

*

Clarke does actually get why some number of fans think she and Murphy are a thing; it's a combination of aggressive heteronormativity and a basic misunderstanding of what she actually _does_ on set. Because the thing is, she doesn't actually spend very much time with Murphy when they're filming. They're in the same area for seven weeks at at a time, and Clarke basically sees him for the first week, the fourth week, and the last week. To everyone watching at home, she and Murphy have the kind of friendly rivalry that often reads as romantic, and Bellamy is a minor, supporting character.

But he's the one Clarke talks to all the time, the one she works with. Murphy's her co-star, but Bellamy is her _partner_.

Not that she really wants the fans getting invested in their relationship either. But if they're going to get invested in one of Clarke's relationships on the show, Murphy makes the least sense. And not just because he's already married, and no one understands how to use fucking google. The two of them just aren't like that. Honestly, they don't even hang out that much, outside of filming.

Bellamy, on the other hand, meets her at nine at the house. Lexa and Costia are already in a hotel, and it's pretty normal for them to stop by properties without cameras, at least before the work starts. When they're renovating, Bellamy's team always has one camera on them, in case something actually unexpected happens, but most of the "twists" on the show have been planned and scripted, so they rarely use any B-roll footage of him, and no one really cares if he shows up alone to work.

Clarke is a little more questionable, but everyone's used to her by now. And they are, after all, a team.

"Here," says Bellamy, handing her a coffee cup. It's pretty standard practice from him, unlike Murphy, and Clarke accepts it with a smile.

"You know I make more than you, right?"

"So you can buy me a drink later." He takes a drink, looks over the house with a nod. "It's nice."

"From the front."

"Nice facade, shitty on the inside? I can relate."

She elbows him. "It's more like a good face and a terrible ass, and you've got a great ass."

"As always, I appreciate your support. I did some landscaping at my sister's," he adds, sounding thoughtful. "Does that help?"

"Were you good at it?"

"Depends if you ask her or Lincoln."

Clarke snorts. "Show me some pictures, I know you have them."

"Let's look at this place first, and you tell me what they want. It might not work with my skill set."

"I still want pictures."

His face dissolves into a helpless smile. "Yeah, I know you do. We can do that over breakfast."

There's some part of Clarke that hopes, against all logic and reason, that the yard will look better when she's prepared for it. Memory always exaggerates these things, distorts them. Things always seem worse in retrospect.

But when she opens the gate, it's still a gross, miserable mudhole.

Bellamy whistles. "Is that driftwood?"

"Apparently a tree got struck by lightning and they never bothered getting it completely removed."

"Jesus. What do they want this to look like?"

"The good news is, they're not that picky, it's the network that wants a total transformation. All the couple wants is for the yard to look good for home visits. They're interested in adopting a rescue dog and a kid in the next few years."

"So, grass, fence, maybe a pathway or something?" he asks. "Nothing fancy."

"What did you do for your sister?"

He pulls his phone out of his pocket and shows her. "Water feature."

Clarke blinks. "Holy shit, this is amazing."

"It came out okay."

"It came out amazing. But your sister wasn't happy with it?"

"She was, she just wanted to fight with me the whole time. But when it was done, she admitted I did a good job."

"You guys seem to have a really healthy vibe going."

"She told me she loved me and paid me, so I'm not complaining." He taps his jaw. "You think a pond would be too dangerous for the potential kid?"

"I think you shouldn't get attached to anything until I tell you the budget and what else they want."

"I bet I can guess."

Clarke laughs. "I bet you can."

He counts off on his fingers. "Open concept, modern kitchen, hardwood floors, more sinks--"

"They already have hardwood floors."

"Oh good. How many sinks?"

"Not enough sinks," she admits.

"What I'm learning is that a house could have a room that's entirely sinks and someone would still think there aren't enough sinks. I don't think I need my own sink in a relationship."

"Maybe that's why you and Gina didn't work."

For a second, she's afraid she went too far, but he just laughs. "Yeah, that's definitely what went wrong. Too few sinks."

"Rookie mistake."

They do a quick walk through the house, but Clarke's not actually that worried about the interior. It's got a few problem areas, but their assessment came back clean, and it shouldn't eat up too much of the budget. Most of the money can go into the yard.

"Okay, I'm thinking we can either do a water feature or more of a kid-focused thing," Bellamy says, over breakfast.

"Kid-focused?"

"Swings or a climbing structure or something. I don't know what their timeline is, and if they have trouble adopting, that might be painful, but--"

Clarke adds a few trees to the sketch she has going of the yard. "I think not yet, but maybe some trees and a deck? Something with room for kids, when they get them."

He nods. "So, no water feature?"

"What do you want for a water feature? If you can show me something good--"

He moves from his side of the table to hers, leaning in close to expect her sketch. The scent of him, warm and a little spicy, is overwhelming to be confronted with all at once, and she doesn't let herself snuggle into him, no matter how much she wants to.

Just because he's single now, that doesn't change anything.

"I was thinking a pond here," he says, gesturing to the left corner, away from the house. "Nothing too big, but we could get some plants, maybe even fish. If we're going to redo the yard, we can't just put down some grass, we need to make it special."

"It is the season premiere."

"It is."

"I am a little worried about the dog or the kid falling into the pond."

"Yeah, I was thinking we could put a stone border around it." He takes her pencil and adds the small pond, surrounded by stones, with a stepping-stone path leading to it. "Something like that, maybe half a foot above ground level? Not a wall, just a barrier. If we put in a deck, you could see the water from there, but if the kid or the dog was running around, they'd have more trouble just falling in."

"You totally want to be a landscape architect."

"As always, I just want you to beat Murphy."

"As always. You can take this one," she says, tearing the sketch out. "Flesh it out, figure out how much money and material you need. I'll see what I need in the house, and if we can afford it--"

"I'll make us afford it."

Bellamy is the right man for this job for all sorts of reasons, but his ability to pinch pennies is right up there. He knows how to make money last.

"Cool. I'll text you updates on the other houses, you can let me know what our prices look like. Contractors?"

"Contractors," he agrees, and the whole time they're through the folders, reviewing their options, he doesn't go back to the other side of the booth. It makes sense, of course--they're reading together, this is easier--but still.

It's nice.

*

"Sorry about your divorce."

Bellamy blinks. They're out for drinks with Murphy and Raven, the resident electrical expert. She's not attached to the show full-time like Bellamy is, but she's their contractor whenever she can make it work. She tends to stop by for a couple weeks to yell about coding and then drift out of their lives as mysteriously as she appeared. 

She's the one to kick Murphy under the table. "It's not a divorce if they never get married, dumbass."

"Yeah, just your average breakup," says Bellamy. "We're still friends. Honestly, it went so much better than it had any right to, I'm still waiting for us to have this big blowup fight."

"Nothing?" asks Raven. "You proposed and she said no and it was all cool?"

"It sucked during the actual conversation, but once it happened we both felt better. Which is a pretty good sign the breakup was the right call." He takes a long swig of beer. "Do we have to talk about this? I know it's new for you guys, but I actually am over it."

"It's your fault for not telling us," says Clarke.

"Yeah," Murphy adds. "Should have just lied and told us you got married. They never ask for proof."

Clarke rolls her eyes. "I've met Emori, I know you guys are married."

"You know we _say_ we're married. You've never seen our marriage certificate."

"Wow, yeah," says Raven. "Can't believe we never called you out on that one. That's a totally normal thing to ask your friends for."

"I'm just saying, Bellamy was already lying to us, he could have kept going."

"Yeah, I love lying to friends." He takes a drink. "Look, I wanted to tell you, I did. But I also didn't want anything getting on camera. I'm not saying any of you would say anything, but if I just didn't mention it, I wasn't going to slip up. Seriously, I'm sorry for lying, but I'm fine. Better, even."

"Then I'm happy for you," says Raven, raising her glass. "Seeing anyone new?"

"Jesus, no."

"Come on, it's not a weird question. If you guys broke up around Christmas, it's been like--seven months?"

"Yeah, that doesn't mean I was looking for anything new. You haven't been in a relationship for a while either, does that mean you're seeing someone?"

"Yeah, actually. This guy Zeke."

That's big enough news that it draws attention off Bellamy, but Clarke keeps watching him. He really does seem fine, and probably even better than before, but like Raven said, it's been seven months. And the last time she saw him, he was hiding this. Something must be different.

"What about you?" Raven asks her, and she almost jumps.

"What?"

"Dating. Anyone new in the picture?"

She smiles a little. "No, no one new."

*

Monday morning, Clarke meets Bellamy at Costia and Lexa's place, flanked by cameras. He hasn't shaved and he's wearing his glasses, holding a clipboard with a pencil tucked behind his ear. If this is the first time they see him this season, #baellamy is definitely going to trend again.

"So," he says, "what are we looking at?"

"Your beard," she says, poking his jaw. It's a little risky, but she thinks it doesn't count as flirting. The producers did want her to mention it. "What's going on there?"

"It's growing on me."

She groans. "Dad jokes? Really?"

"They're classics for a reason. Am I not allowed to get facial hair? Was I supposed to submit an expense report first? I promise it didn't cost me anything."

"I assume you actually saved money on razors."

"That's not how beards work, you still have to do upkeep." He clears his throat, takes the pencil from behind his ear. "It's my face, I can do what I want. Tell me about the house."

"Our owners are Costia and Lexa," Clarke says. "Costia just finished up her PhD and got a new job, Lexa just got a promotion. They've had a busy few years and they've realized they didn't get to do any of the work on their house they wanted to. Now they want to get a rescue puppy and look into adopting, so they want the house to be ready for their new family."

"Sounds easy. What's the catch?"

"They need a new bedroom, a new kitchen--"

"Two sinks in the en suite?"

"Who's giving this tour?"

"Just working on a project," he says, making a mark on his clipboard. "Show me the place."

The house tour is pretty straightforward--there's a guest room that they want made into a room for the potential kid, which won't be a problem, the kitchen and en suite, all the usual things--and Bellamy takes notes the whole time, like he's decided that this is going to be his new thing. Like they haven't already discussed all of this.

When she takes him to the back yard, he whistles, just like the first time he saw it. "Wow."

"This is the real project, obviously."

"You know you're an _interior_ decorator, right?"

"You don't think we can handle it?"

"I never said _I_ couldn't."

"Thanks. I've got some great plans. We can add in a deck, maybe a pond in the corner. You've done ponds before, right?"

"That's why I'm not worried about me. Redoing a backyard takes money."

"They know it does. I think we can make it work."

"Well, let's see what we've got."

They do a few more takes, just to be safe, and then move on to the second house. At this one, Bellamy keeps taking notes, and when Clarke gets to the room that the husband wants turned into his man cave (one of Bellamy's least favorite phrases), he says, "There we go."

"People like man caves, I keep telling you."

"No, I got bingo."

Her eyebrows shoot up. "Bingo?"

He turns the clipboard to her, and her hand flies up to her mouth to cover her laugh. He's made his own renovations bingo card; _open concept_ is in the free space, of course, and he's gotten a diagonal match with _en suite bathroom_ , _man cave_ , _granite counter-tops_ , and _fireplace_.

"How many of these did you make?"

His shrug is casual, but his mouth is giving him away, the grin threatening to burst at every seam. "I just came up with a bunch of options and found this site online that plugged them into random grids."

"Oh my god, you're such a dork."

"You're just jealous I thought of it first."

He brings a clipboard for her the next day, with cards of her own, and Clarke spends the whole day with the prickling awareness of cameras on them, wondering what the producers are seeing, what the audience will be. She's doesn't think she's doing anything she wouldn't have last season, when he had Gina, but she _knows_ now that he's single, and smiling at him or looking at him for a little too long doesn't come with its usual chaser of guilt.

Murphy's right; this could be dangerous.

It gets better and worse once they're done with the home visits. Clarke has a decent amount of downtime, once the first week and a half of filming is done, because she's a supervisor, not a worker. She tells Bellamy what needs to get done, he gets his contractors to do it, and while she's still more involved than she needs to be--picking out paint colors, finding new furniture, making sure everyone knows where the money is going so they don't get sued--there's still plenty of time when she doesn't need to be doing anything.

She really does think she'd be spending most of her time fretting about Costia and Lexa's backyard even if Bellamy and Gina hadn't broken up, but another part of her brain is aware that she's spending a lot of her time on the property, and Bellamy is too, and that's--notable. There's a lot to do there, and Clarke really does want to learn more about the landscaping process, but it doesn't feel entirely normal.

After a week, Bellamy shows no sign of noticing, but Raven shows up at her hotel with a pizza and a twelve-pack of PBR on Friday, and when Clarke opens the door, all she says is, "So, Bellamy."

"Don't you have a boyfriend? Shouldn't you be on a date?"

"It's the twenty-first century, dating isn't just for the weekend. I want to hear what's going on with you."

Clarke steps out of the way to admit her. "You could have called."

"You would have said you were busy."

"I do like hanging out with you. If you just wanted to get dinner and watch a movie, I'd be thrilled."

"Don't act like you aren't dying to vent to someone about how Bellamy's apparently been single since last season."

"I kind of am," she admits.

"Thought so. You really didn't know?"

"I thought he got married over hiatus."

"But he didn't, and now he's on the market."

Clarke takes one of the beers and opens it up. "I wasn't waiting for him to break up with her so I could pounce."

"Of course you weren't. You were pretty great at pretending not to be jealous. But don't forget I was there when you found out he had a girlfriend and you decided we had to get drunk immediately."

Clarke makes a face. He and Gina hadn't been together when the show started; he'd come back from the hiatus between seasons two and three dating her, and they didn't find out about it for a couple months. Clarke hadn't really been thinking about making a move, not in a concrete way, but she'd been aware that something was growing in her, and the knowledge of his being in a relationship cut it off.

But cutting down growing things isn't enough; if you don't take the roots out, they can always recover

"I could have been getting drunk for unrelated reasons." But she doesn't even give Raven a chance to argue with that one. "I wasn't, but I could have been."

"You could have been. Look, I'm just curious where you're at. I know you haven't been pining away, I get that. But I also know that you've been wishing you said something when you had the chance, and now you've got the chance again. So--what are you thinking?"

There are many things Clarke loves about Raven, but the fact that she always knows the right question to ask is at the top.

"I'm thinking we're coworkers, and most of our relationship isn't real."

"Yeah?"

"That's what we do for the show. It's what the cameras want."

Raven leans forward to grab a slice of pizza. "So, you and Murphy, you guys don't have a real relationship?"

"Of course we do."

"But you play it up for the cameras."

"Yeah, but we're still--" She stops, and Raven just gives her a look. "We're still co-workers, we're not best friends or anything."

"That's not because your relationship isn't real, it's because you and Murphy aren't best friends. We're friends, right?"

"You never appear on camera."

"Yeah, but when we hang out, we're not on camera, and we hang out with Bellamy all the time. At worst, this is a chicken-and-egg thing, but I don't think it's actually that complicated. Bellamy got hired because he had a good vibe with you. You guys just clicked. And you click off camera too. I know you needed to tell yourself a bunch of shit to talk yourself out of having feelings for him when he had a girlfriend, but he doesn't have one anymore, so maybe try being honest and figuring out if you can actually get what you want."

"It would be such a mess," Clarke says. "The network would love it, but I'd want to murder them."

"So tell them to butt out. It's not like they can make you guys do anything you don't want to do. But you already flirt on camera, eventually they're going to figure out they should capitalize on it. What you want to do with that is up to you. But if you don't make a move because you're afraid the network will be dicks, you'll regret it."

"Good talk. Are we done? Can we just watch a movie and hang out now? I missed you."

Raven puts her arm around Clarke's shoulder. "That was next on my list, yeah. Done with boys--romance," she corrects, with a nod to Clarke. "Gender-neutral feelings. I want to watch _Fury Road_ , that cool?"

"That is exactly what I need." She settles in against the pillows, grabbing another beer. "Let's do it."

*

"Where do you live?"

Bellamy glances over his shoulder, frowning. "In LA, same as you. Well, okay, probably a way less expensive part of LA. This should be pretty low-maintenance," he adds, holding up a plant. "To go near the pond."

"Sure. I meant, like--apartment? Condo? House? I don't know what kind of place you have. And the plant is good, get it."

He puts two in the cart. "I bought a house after the season two hiatus. It's two stories, and I rent the second one out. And I sublet the first, when I'm working. It's a good investment, and I'm making money on it until I'm done with the show."

"How's the yard?"

"No water feature, but still pretty great. I take care of it when I'm around, and my friend takes care of it when I'm not." He looks at her sidelong. "I assume you live in a condo that feels like a hotel."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You're good at making beautiful spaces," he says, with an ease that makes her flush. "You're not good at living in them."

"You say, not even knowing where I live."

He grabs some mulch. "Sorry, am I wrong?"

"Kind of."

"That means I'm right."

"My condo looks like the kind of condo I want to live in," she says, and he snorts.

"If you don't like living there, it's not the place you want to live. It looks like a catalog, right?"

"It's nice!"

"But it's not you."

"No, it's not me."

"What do you actually _like_?" he asks. "I know what's on trend and what you get asked to do, but if you were making a place where you felt comfortable, what would it look like?"

"My own personal man cave?" she teases.

"Man cave done right."

It's something she hasn't thought about before, and she has to take a minute. Bellamy doesn't press, just pushes the cart around the store, grabbing more plants and planting supplies as they catch his eye, giving her time to think about it.

"On the smaller side," she says, slow. "I don't need that much space, and I don't want to maintain a big yard. Lots of windows, natural light. Hardwood floors."

He laughs. "Obviously."

"But I do like rugs for accents. Paint all the rooms different colors."

"Yeah?"

"I like painting."

"We should work on your place next time we're in town," he says, casual and easy, and Clarke's heart stutters. They've _never_ hung out on hiatus; Bellamy doesn't even do promo or do industry parties. He's on the show, but he's not a personality. She never has an excuse to see him.

"We should?"

His neck goes a little red. "You don't want to work on your place?"

"I do. That would be nice."

"Cool. Why were you asking?" he adds. "About where I live."

"I just realized I didn't know. I feel like I don't know that much about you."

"What do you think my place looks like?"

"Neat," she says, slow. "Pretty minimal. Earth tones and wood. A lot of used furniture. Comfortable, but still looks good. Homey."

"See?" he says, leaning his arms on the cart as they walk. "You know me pretty well."

*

The thing about doing remodeling for TV is that time is of the essence, in a lot of annoying ways. They have seven weeks with these properties, and at the end of those seven weeks, things have to look _good_. It's long enough to do most things, but sometimes, they have to fudge for the cameras, and sometimes, they have to do things Clarke wouldn't ordinarily do.

All of which feels a thousand times worse when she has to work with a yard. They got grass planted where they wanted it right away, hoping it would look good enough by the end of seven weeks for the camera, but Clarke's still a little worried. Putting a real garden together on demand is a lot, and even if she and Bellamy are up to the challenge, it's stressful.

"I feel like we're neglecting the other houses," she admits. She's supervising the deck, in theory, but she's mostly looking at the--admittedly much improved--yard and wondering if the producers are going to want to fake a more impressive transformation. It happens, from time to time, and the work always gets done, but she always feels guilty. Like she's not good enough on her own.

"The other houses are easy," says Bellamy. He's not wearing a shirt, which Clarke is trying not to notice. He's been shirtless before, and if she reacts this time, one of the producers will definitely notice. Even if his contract says he won't appear shirtless on screen, they'd find a way to make it clear that she was trying to count the freckles on his back. "Same old, same old."

"It's only been four seasons, don't tell me you're burning out."

"It's a job," he says, shrugging. "Just because it's a weird job doesn't mean it's not work. Some jobs are weirder than others, but the bingo card works because people tend to want the same things. We're getting good at them." He throws her a grin, which is way too much on top of the shirtless situation. "It's awesome. I like being good at my job."

"It is. Except for the whole yard thing."

"It must be so hard for you to not be amazing at something."

"This is my brand, Bellamy. I have a reputation."

"Yeah, but not as a landscaper. Maybe we should bomb this. If we do well, we're probably going to have to do more of it."

"If we do well at this, it's because of you," she says. "If we're adding yards to our skill set, that would be you. You could be the third lead," she adds, grinning. "Team You Should Stay, officially a duo."

"Pass."

"Come on."

"I'm already on camera more than I want to be, why would I want a bigger part?"

"You know you're good, right? Like--not just at the design stuff. The audience loves you."

"You're not actually trying to talk me into trying to renegotiate my contract, are you?" he asks, grabbing his water and taking a seat next to her. "I think we've got this thing down to an art. Or at least as close as it comes to being an art."

"Just curious, I guess. Why would you sign up to be a TV contractor if you didn't want to be on TV?"

"Because I get more money and steadier work. I don't even have to find my own clients. It was a no-brainer."

"But you don't want to be a star?"

"I'm enough of a star already. This is my preferred level of fame, I don't want to go any higher."

"Yeah, this is a little too much for me," she admits.

Bellamy snorts. "So, even you don't like being on TV this much, but you want me to start doing it too?"

"Misery loves company. And you'd take some heat off me."

"Still no. But I'll let you take credit for how great I am at landscape design and take the fall if it sucks."

"That sounds like a really good deal for me."

"Maybe I'm nicer than you." He smiles at her, all softness. "If you're worried I'm not happy, you can stop. I love this job, I'm not going anywhere."

She has to swallow to get her throat working. "Good. You better not."

*

The third week, they have their manufactured fight, where Bellamy supposedly discovers a coding problem with the AC unit in the Cooper house, and Clarke has to pretend to freak out about a budget problem she knew existed while the couple yells at her for issues they knew existed already.

Bellamy's maybe right about his level of involvement; he doesn't need to get any more involved with this process. He's already in too deep.

Costia and Lexa, on the other hand, are so enthusiastic about what she and Bellamy have done so far that Harper has to actually step in and tell them to do it again, and supply them with some criticisms, so it's not just a slam dunk for Clarke.

It's going to be, obviously, but they have to pretend it's a competition.

"You guys have a natural advantage," Murphy grumbles. "It's not even fair. No one actually _wants_ to move. It's a huge pain. So I have to do twice as much work--"

"Oh, don't even start," says Bellamy, rolling his eyes. "We have to actually put this stuff together, all you're doing is giving house tours."

"Wow, teeth coming out, huh?"

"He's got a point," says Raven. "We're the ones doing work."

"Finding houses is work! You guys couldn't do what I do."

"That's because me and Bellamy are anti-social assholes and Clarke would criticize the houses non-stop." She pauses. "Honestly, I don't know how you got into this either. How are you good at it?"

"I needed money and I love bullshitting. It's basically the perfect job for me. And I'm basically the most famous real estate agent in the country, so--fuck all y'all."

"Compelling argument," says Clarke. "But that's not why we're here."

Raven perks up. "It's not. We're on week four, we've all gotten to know the couples some, so--who do we think isn't going to make it?"

"Lexa and Costia seem solid," Bellamy offers. "They made it through Costia's doctorate and whatever nightmare job Lexa's got, and they're pretty much on the same page with what they want. I think they're going to be fine."

Murphy nods. "Kara's scary, but probably too scary for her husband to dump her."

"She's intense," Bellamy corrects. "There's nothing wrong with that. Some people like intensity."

"Like who?" Clarke asks, without really meaning to. It's not as if she disagrees, but from what she remembers, Gina was pretty chill. Which doesn't mean he only likes laid back girls, but that's her only point of reference for his relationships. She'd put herself a lot farther down the intensity scale; it would be nice to know if that was a draw for him.

"You, I assume," Bellamy says, easy. "Costia, from what I saw of Lexa. Lincoln, Raven's boyfriend. I'm not saying that means they're going to make it, just that he could be into that."

"Myles and Fox are definitely breaking up," Murphy says. "No one's arguing that one, right?"

"Yeah, that's not going to last," Clarke agrees. "Luna and Nyko are pretty much a wild card."

Bellamy takes a deliberate drink of beer, savoring the moment. "I don't think they're actually together."

"Wait, what?" asks Raven.

"Obviously, I don't actually spend that much time with them. But I'm betting on roommates pretending to be a couple to get their place renovated."

"And you're only telling us this now?" asks Murphy. "Can't believe you've been holding out on us, Blake."

"I don't have evidence. But I got a vibe."

"Is this you projecting?" Raven asks. "Like, you were lying about being engaged so now you think everyone is?"

"Yeah, it's my new superpower." He shrugs. "Maybe I'm wrong. But if anyone wants to bet, I say Luna and Nyko aren't really a thing."

"I'll take that action," says Raven, and they shake on it.

The conversation moves on from there--Murphy, as always, has funny stories about the houses he found and the completely unexpected reactions people have to them--but Clarke can't help her mind sticking on Bellamy.

To be fair, her mind feels as if it's a broken record with Bellamy right now. She's been trying to take the conversation with Raven to heart, but it's--well, honestly, it's just _a lot_. Even if her relationship with Bellamy basically is real, the set of a reality TV show isn't a good place to try to pursue a relationship.

In theory, she could wait for hiatus. But the season only just started; even their winter break feels like it's years away.

But there's also just the simple fact that she can't quite believe he's really over whatever happened. He's so well adjusted it seems impossible. And she has no idea how he feels about her at all.

"Are there tells?" she asks him, as they walk back to the hotel. Raven and Murphy are ahead of them, not quite totally out of earshot, but involved in their own conversation.

"Hm?" he asks.

"Luna and Nyko. Is there a tell? Something you, as an expert--"

He groans. "I'm not an _expert_. I just didn't want to deal with it for a few months. But I guess I did notice some stuff."

"Like what?"

"They were vague about details. You'd ask when something happened and they wouldn't know dates. Some people don't, but--" He shrugs. "I did that a lot. I was really expecting one of you to call me out on not having a _wedding date_."

"You're private!" she protests, and they both break out laughing. "I did wonder," she admits, once she recovers. "I just thought you didn't want to talk about it."

"I didn't. But I was kind of waiting for you to ask."

Her heart stops, just for a second. The words are crowding her throat-- _I didn't want to know, I hated hearing about it_ \--but she can't quite get them out.

It's not what she wants to say, not really. How she feels about him isn't about Gina or jealousy; she likes _him_. If she's going to tell him anything, it should be about them, not about his ex.

"Also, Nyko and Luna were really into the guest room remodeling," he says, into the lengthening silence. "And wanted a place with three bedrooms if they moved. There's no way they're sharing."

"I'll try to ask some leading questions next time I see them."

She's pretty sure she's not imagining the slight awkwardness in the air between them, but if Bellamy notices, he doesn't comment on it. All he does is nod. "Cool. Let me know what you find out."

*

When the show adds in "unexpected" hurdles for Clarke, it's usually in the third or fourth week, when they feel her stuff is too boring. Most houses she works on has something that could function as a source of drama, and it's always a fun time when Bellamy has to give her fake bad news. They really make the most of bad scenes.

As it turns out, it's a lot less fun when he has to give her real bad news.

The morning of the fifth Tuesday goes well. She's doing the rounds of all the houses on her own, the cameras alert in case something interesting happens, but it's mostly just business as usual. Raven's at the Cooper residence working on their AC, and she and Clarke chat for a bit, and Clarke pokes around Luna and Nyko's bedroom and guest room a bit, looking for clues while the cameras aren't watching, but there's nothing that sways her to Bellamy's interpretation of their relationship.

Bellamy himself is at Costia and Lexa's, of course, so she leaves that one for last, planning to be there for the rest of the afternoon. There's always more to do there, and she can grab Bellamy for drinks after.

It's a great plan, until a pipe in the yard bursts.

Clarke is there for it, which some part of her brain registers as _good_. With her and Bellamy both at the scene, the producers won't need to reshoot anything; they can work with the real footage.

They're in the hole when it happens; they're going closer to the pipe than the actual pond will be to lay foundation, still within code, but something must jostle the wrong way, because suddenly water is coming at them, soaking her and Bellamy and not letting up. She doesn't know a lot about plumbing, but it seems like way too much water to be coming out so quickly from such a small pipe.

Bellamy recovers first, tugging her out of the way and shouting at someone to get the water shut off. It's all commotion, all noise, and Clarke takes a second longer than she wants to recover and gather her wits.

Then, she puts on her game face, and pretends, very hard, that they planned this. "What was that?" she asks.

Bellamy frowns a little, but catches on fast. "That was a burst pipe. I told you I was worried about the plumbing, in a property this old."

He didn't, of course, but they can add that in post. What's the point of a disaster if you don't foreshadow it? Chekov's piping.

"What happened?"

The water shuts off and he jumps down to inspect the damage. It's not as bad as it could be, most of it confined to the hole itself, but the area above the pipe has also suffered some losses.

"Looks like it rusted out. Fuck, we might actually have to check all of their pipes."

"We don't usually?"

He takes his glasses off, trying futilely to find a dry piece of fabric to clean them with. It's only then that she notices the text on his t-shirt. He usually wears shirts with some graphic on them, stuff that wardrobe has approved as not requiring censoring, and she always enjoys them, but they're kind of background data now, not something she notices right away.

This one is plain white, turning a little see-through with the water, and across his chest it reads, _#TeamYouShouldStay_.

"We don't usually do the exterior," he's saying, pulling her attention from the shirt. "It's probably not going to be that expensive, but we'd be assholes if we didn't check to make sure there weren't any other issues."

"And that's a problem?"

"Getting grass coverage in here in the time we had was always going to be rough. If we have to pull up everything we've got over the pipes, I don't know how much coverage we're going to be able to get back before deadline."

Clarke shivers a little. It's not _cold_ , but she wasn't wearing that much, and the wind is picking up. "Fuck."

The feel of Bellamy's hands trying to rub warmth into her arms surprises her. "We can figure it out later, let's get inside. You guys should get some footage of the damage," he adds, to the crew. "We'll be back once we've gotten dried off."

If everyone wasn't so rattled, Clarke can't imagine they really would have gotten away without any cameras following them, but everyone kind of wants to check out the flooding, not follow her and Bellamy in their quest for dry clothing.

"You have anything?" he asks.

"Yeah, I always bring a change of clothes, just in case."

He snorts. "From anyone else, I would assume that was sarcasm, but I know you."

"Like you don't."

"I work in construction, I actually need a change of clothes to be seen in public at the end of the day."

"But that shirt is so nice."

He looks down at himself. "I didn't think you noticed."

"I didn't, until we got soaked. I'm not used to your shirts being relevant."

"Figured I should tell everyone where I stand."

She shivers again, waiting for him to find his own clothes in his truck. "I think everyone already knows."

"Apparently not. You can go inside, you know, you don't have to wait for me."

"I don't even know where I should change, half of the place is a construction zone."

He grabs his t-shirt and jeans and leads her inside, through the half-gutted house. It's empty, everyone in the back, scrambling to find and repair the damage. It's the most alone they've ever been on set, and everything is quiet and close, like they're going through a haunted house.

"You can change in here," he says, pushing the door open to one of the rooms they're not working on.

"What about you?"

"I'll wait."

"I think we can share a room to change clothes," she says, before she's actually thought about the implications of that statement.

Bellamy looks a little dubious himself, but she's said it, and she's not taking it back now. They're adults; she's seen him shirtless plenty of times. It's not weird.

Apparently he comes to the same conclusion. "Let me just grab a couple towels."

The question of whether or not to start taking off clothes before he gets back is a difficult one, mostly because now that she's realized she offered to get changed with him, it's impossible to not overthink every detail of the whole scenario. And it's not as if asking herself what she'd normally do in this situation would help, because even if she _wasn't_ interested, it would still be awkward. If this was Raven, would she be taking off her shirt now, in preparation for the towel, or would it be easier to wait? Is there any real advantage to taking off her clothes before he gets back, except that he might think it's weird for her to be dressed when he gets back?

By the time he gets back, she's worked her stomach into knots, but the sight of him uncoils it a little. His hair is a mess and his smile is slightly crooked, freckles standing out even more, and still he's wearing that stupid shirt that she didn't even notice, that he didn't even mention.

They're on the same side, one way or the other.

"Did you get that custom made?"

He doesn't have to ask what she means. "Octavia actually made it for me. Kind of a combination thank-you-slash-apology for me helping out over the summer."

"It's cute."

"Thanks." He bites the corner of his mouth, looking her over, and her heartbeat trips into overdrive. She could be misreading the moment, but she's been in this moment before.

Historically, it's leading to a kiss.

"Uh, here," he says, offering the towel. "I assume Costia and Lexa won't mind if we borrow them."

"Probably not." He's still watching, and it's somehow easier to pull the shirt off than it is to say something. Words are fucking terrifying, but she knows exactly how great her breasts look in this bra.

"Clarke," he says, and when she cocks her head, he laughs. "I don't really have a follow-up, just--it's not just me, right? This is something."

"I thought it was just me," she admits, and that's apparently enough for him. He steps in, hands on her arms again, and leans down to her.

There are three points of contact, for the first seconds of the kiss, nothing but lips and hands, but every inch of skin is on fire in the best way, like he's burning into her, actually leaving marks.

She wouldn't mind if he did.

After those brief seconds, though, her brain recovers, and she surges forward, arms wrapping around his neck as he laughs, and they trade kisses that get longer and longer, settling in like this is all they're going to do all afternoon. That would be nice, really; she's got years of _not_ kissing Bellamy to make up for.

But then there's some shouting outside, the sound of a truck backing up, and reality starts to set in, the damp clothes and the fact that they're making out in someone else's house that they're renovating for a TV show.

She slides out of his arms, and he laughs, bright and unbelieving.

"That wasn't really how I was planning to do that."

It's almost better than the kissing, if she's honest. "How were you planning to do it?"

"I hadn't figured it out yet, but it was going to be good. Romantic."

"Same." She bites her lip. "We should go deal with the pipes before they come looking for us."

"Or I could just take off my shirt and then they can't use any footage of us up here that they do get."

"Or we could do our jobs at work and make out when we're done."

His grin is crooked. "Or that, yeah." He ducks in for another kiss. "You want to get dinner with me?"

She reclaims her towel and starts drying off, not even pretending not to watch as he starts stripping down. "I really do."

*

"How much of a dick can I be about this?" Murphy asks.

He was showing Costia and Lexa a house when the pipe burst, so they got five takes of him receiving a dramatic "there's been an emergency" call, and then brought everyone back over so they could react in real time. They've had to actually shuffle the budget and priorities, but Clarke thinks they can make it work. It won't be _as_ nice, but if Costia and Lexa can find a little more cash, it'll be fine.

If they can't, Clarke might finance it herself. She wants this one to be good.

"We've never had an actual surprise before, I don't want to get punched," he continues.

"Treat it like a planned surprise, I can handle it."

His eyes narrow. "Really? This one was, like, your baby. You're not pissed?"

"We'll make it work."

"And I can be as much of a dick as I want about it."

"Yup."

He glances around, finds the cameras a safe distance away. "Did you guys find out about this before it happened?"

"Nope."

"And you're not freaking out."

"I'm really good at my job."

Bellamy comes up next to them. "Hey, I got the estimates for new soil cover, you ready to go over them?"

"Ohhh," says Murphy. "Okay, I got it. Good job, congratulations, I'm going to be a total asshole for the next month."

On the one hand, Clarke can't believe Murphy intuited from a single sentence that she and Bellamy hooked up, but, on the other, she has no idea what else he would have figured out, so apparently they're really obvious, and they should work on it.

But for now, they have more pressing things to deal with.

"Do your worst," she tells Murphy, and tells Bellamy, "What have you got?"

They don't have time to go over the whole plan, but Bellamy knows what he's doing, and they had extra cash stashed away for buying furniture and decorations that they can dip into. It's not ideal, but she really does want this one to come out right.

Lexa and Costia do well being horrified, panicked, and irrationally angry at Clarke, as if she personally took a crowbar to the pipe for fun. Off-camera, they offer more funds and ask if anyone was hurt, because that's how reality works in reality TV, but on camera, Clarke takes a beating even before Murphy shows up.

"You know, I found an _amazing_ house for them," he says, once their scene starts. Clarke is in the hole, back in her wet clothes, for the drama. It's unclear why she even bothered changing, except that changing got her a great makeout session with Bellamy, so it was the best decision she's made on the entire show. "It's got everything. And it's brand new, so you know the pipes are good."

"And we're going to replace the pipes, so these ones are going to be good too. And the pond is going to look amazing."

"Did they even ask for a pond? I didn't see _water feature_ on my list of wants."

"So you're saying I've actually got an advantage, going above and beyond."

"I'm giving them what they actually want, and nicer. You started with a mudhole and it looks like you're going to end with a mudhole full of rocks."

"Well, they didn't have rocks before."

"They needed an upgrade on the guest bedroom, right? Are you just going to put the rocks in there and call it a day? Because I found kids' rooms that have beds in them."

"All I'm hearing is that we had an actual disaster on our site and you're still afraid you can't do better than what I'm coming up with."

"I just want you to be prepared for failure."

"You should be too," says Clarke, grin spreading on her face. "This one's mine."

*

"Is it egotistical if I want a comprehensive history of your feelings for me?"

Bellamy laughs. They're at the same bar they came to the first day they were here, tucked into the same booth, and Clarke is achy from working and honestly a little stressed about making the house work in spite of everything, but she _is_ on a date with Bellamy Blake. That's something. "Yeah, but I'll give you one if you give me one."

"You're great," she says, with a small smile. "I liked you right from day one."

"The first thing we did was get into an actual argument during my audition. It wasn't scripted, it just happened."

"But it was fun, and you beat me fair and square. I like that. And I just kept on liking you. And then you came back from hiatus with a girlfriend, so--"

He rubs the back of his neck. "Well, you were dating all through the second season, from what I could tell."

It's news to her. "I was?"

"You went on dates."

"Yeah, but that's not--I wasn't _dating_. I didn't have a relationship."

"I know. But I figured you didn't want one, and I did. So--"

"So you got a girlfriend. Not, like--I know it wasn't because of me."

"No, but if I thought you were interested, I wouldn't have gone out with her. And that was--we talked about that. Before, during, and after the breakup."

"Really?"

He shrugs, but the awkwardness is setting in now. "She'd seen the show, she knew how we were together. I wasn't going to lie to her about it. I said I'd had a thing for you but you weren't interested, and that was it. That's not why we didn't get married, but after we talked it out, she did say I should try to talk to you again."

"And then you didn't tell me that you broke up with her for seven months."

"I really didn't know how. I felt like it was--making a big deal about it."

"Your girlfriend turned down your marriage proposal. That _is_ a big deal."

"Not the kind it was supposed to be. Which made me feel like a colossal dick, by the way. I really should have cared more about losing her. Especially since she followed up on turning me down with _you're still in love with your coworker_."

As inappropriate as it is, Clarke grins. "Yeah, okay, that would be awkward."

"Not that you mind."

"I was still in love with you too."

It's his turn to smile. "And Gina's got a girlfriend she really likes, so she was honestly doing better coming out of the breakup than I was. Until today."

"She's probably still doing better than you. You're always a mess."

"Thanks."

"I like messes."

"Me too."

"It's going to be weird if people find out," she says, drumming her fingers on the table. "I know you don't want to be on the show more, but--they'll want to capitalize on this, once they know about it."

"Do you want that?"

"If you wanted a bigger role on the show, I'd still support that," she says. "Not because you're my boyfriend, because you're my partner. It feels weird to act like I just tell you what to do and you argue with me, we work together. But Murphy thinks if they find out we're a couple, they'll want us to become a franchise, and that's--no."

"But they'd really want us to."

"The Bellamy and Clarke show, yeah."

He cocks his head at her. "When did Murphy tell you that?"

"As soon as I told him you and Gina broke up. He decided the writing was on the wall."

"Apparently he was right. We could just not tell them," he says. "I mean, we can tell Murphy and Raven, people like that, but no one else needs to know. Apparently I'm pretty good at lying about my relationship status."

"Gina wasn't on set."

"No. But it would be kind of fun, right? Seeing how long it takes them to notice?"

It's possibly not the mature, adult way to deal with things, but they're on a show that spends most of its time fabricating reality, so why shouldn't they fabricate their own? Fair's fair.

"Yeah, that does sound fun."

"Cool. So, we're doing this?"

" _This_ being dating?" she teases.

He doesn't take the bait, just smiles. "Yeah."

She smiles back. "Then yeah, we're doing this."

*

The last couple weeks of renovations fly by. It's not just that she's dating Bellamy now, but that's certainly part of it. As something of a workaholic, Clarke has historically struggled with filling up her time off on jobs. With a boyfriend around, she finds herself looking forward to the end of filming every day so they can hang out.

Which, to be fair, they did before they were dating too, but now they have sex, which is really helping with her overall mood. And, as stressful as the genuine time and money crunch on Costia and Lexa's place is, it keeps them busy the rest of the time. 

But it comes out well, if Clarke does say so herself. Amazing, even. The interior work is pretty basic, just a few coats of paint and some new decorations, but the kid bedroom came out well. And the real star is the back, because despite their setbacks, Bellamy delivered.

"You're getting credit for this one," she tells him on their final walk-through.

"I get credit for everything. Everyone knows I'm the backbone of this team."

"I'm serious. You should come for the reveal on this one. We can do a version without you, but you worked really hard here. You deserve some of the spotlight."

"Maybe. Would that be okay?" he asks Harper, over his shoulder.

"I'll check, but we never mind more of you. You're good for ratings."

"Terrifying, thanks." He smiles at Clarke in a way that makes her think their relationship isn't going to stay on the down-low for long. His heart eyes are not subtle. "I'll come if the producers are cool with it, but I'm not feeling like I need extra credit. You can tell them I did most of the work even if I'm not there."

He does join them the next day, though, wearing his _#TeamYouShouldStay_ shirt, and when Lexa says the house is perfect and the yard is better than they ever could have imagined, he ducks his head, hiding a smile that will, once again, make every person who's watching and even a little bit into guys fall in love with him.

But he's Clarke's, so they can suck it.

They stay in the house, as do Luna and Nyko, while Myles and Fox and Kara and George decide to move. It's about what everyone expected; Myles and Fox are unhappy in their relationship, and they're hoping changing the rest of their lives by changing their house, and the Coopers' place was just too small. She didn't think she'd win them over.

She and Bellamy join Murphy and Raven for dinner and the traditional debriefing, where Raven sums up the results the four of them care about.

"Clarke and Murphy are tied for wins," she says. "No one broke up yet, so that's to be determined, but I still think Fox and Myles are toast."

"No one's going to argue that one," says Bellamy.

"Did anyone get anything definitive on Nyko and Luna?" Clarke asks. "I couldn't."

Murphy raises his hand, clucking his tongue for emphasis. "Nyko got a call from his boyfriend during our last house tour and Luna distracted the cameras so they could talk. I said I wouldn't tell the producers because I don't give a shit, and I didn't, but they're definitely just roommates."

"Told you," says Bellamy, and Raven shakes her head.

"Whatever, you guys hooked up here, which means I still beat Murphy."

Clarke frowns. "Beat Murphy at what?"

"I thought you two wouldn't get your shit together for at least ten weeks. Apparently Raven had more faith."

"Come on, have you seen how Clarke looks at him? No way she was going to wait ten weeks to get laid."

That's undeniable. "I definitely wasn't," she agrees, and grants Raven a high five when she puts her hand up.

"Whatever," says Murphy. "I was just warming up. Where are we going next? Michigan? That's gonna be all me. I've got a feeling this is my year."

"Really?" Clarke asks. "So far I got a new boyfriend and did a kickass yard renovation. All you got was easy wins. It's only been seven weeks and I've already got enough to make it my year."

"Yeah? You want to bet on that?"

He offers his hand, because they never bother actually putting money on anything, and Clarke shakes without hesitation. Bellamy's on her side, and they're good at this, somehow. They could keep going for twenty years, and she'd be thrilled.

This is her life, and she wouldn't have it any other way.

"Yeah," she tells Murphy. "I'm in."


End file.
